"As a samurai, you are remembered not for your martial name, but for your elegance. You cannot regain your homeland for your family, but you can still gain a false reputation... For a samurai, it is not an honorable thing in any case. ..."
However, Nambada Norishige did not feel complacent, but instead sighed with some regret.
"Haha, the speaker is unintentional and the listener is intentional. I feel like I have been ridiculed." The elegant man Imagawa Yoshimoto, who was not interested in martial arts names, laughed twice.
"Ah! I didn't mean that, don't blame His Highness Jibu." Nambada Norishige, who was immersed in his own sorrow, just realized that Imagawa Yoshimoto himself is an arty person, and hurriedly leaned over and said: "The affairs of the Ogidani Uesugi family are still going on. Please give me a lot of thanks..."
"It's okay, how can I be the one who cares about these things? As long as you are not scorning my low attainments in Japanese singing, calligraphy and painting, I don't care about other satires." Imagawa Yoshimoto laughed to resolve Nambada Norishige's embarrassment, " A very elegant person."
"Hey... only someone as talented and strategic as His Highness Zhibu, who leads his family to expand the territory, can openly admit that "he is an elegant person" without any burden. "Namba Tian Norishige laughed twice, and then his laughter gradually became bitter: "If your family and country are in crisis, if you still mess up your affairs because of your elegance, then the crime of being "arty" will be serious. "
"Tanmasa is serious." Seeing that Nambada Norishige had no interest in joking at all, Imagawa Yoshimoto also restrained his expression, "With a loyal and capable minister like Danmasa here, I believe that the Ogitani Uesugi family will soon be able to regain its former glory. "
"Thank you for your kind words of comfort, His Highness Jibu, but we actually know very well in our hearts that we have no chance." Norishige Nambada shook his head soberly, "The Ogidani Uesugi family only has a few cities left, and it is in danger. Through the ages, The only ones that can develop and grow from a small area are those vigorous emerging forces. They are always on the uphill road, and it is no problem to be small and big. A famous family like the Ogidani Uesugi family, which was once glorious, is now on the downhill road. There are so many internal contradictions and intertwined interests that it is impossible to have such momentum and can only go downhill until it perishes."
On the contrary, he is as pessimistic as Mr. Uesugi of the Yamauchi Uesugi family... Imagawa Yoshimoto secretly rated Nambada Kenshige in his heart - a sober pessimist.
"But as long as the lord is not discouraged, I will continue to fight." But after mentioning Uesugi Chaosada, the governor of the Ogidani Uesugi family, Nambada Norishige's eyes seemed to have some light again. The mediocre family governor who was unreliable in the eyes of Imagawa Yoshimoto and Takeda Harunobu seemed to have other meanings to Nambada Kenshige.
"My lord was only in his early 10s when he succeeded to the throne. What faced him was the ruins of the Uesugi family in Ogitani. Even though the Hojo family captured the castle and was displaced in embarrassment, he was never discouraged. During the defense of Matsuyama Castle, the years The young lord often climbed up to the top of the city, taking the lead in fighting the Hojo army, boosting the morale of the defenders. No matter how hard and tired he was, the lord always shouted for a fierce battle with energy, using awkward words. A pep talk to boost morale. Whenever there is a little bit of good news, the lord will dance with excitement, as if the revival of the Ogidani Uesugi family is close at hand..."
Namba Tian Norishige pursed his lips, glanced at Imagawa Yoshimoto, then looked away, and said to himself: "Perhaps in the eyes of His Highness Jibu and His Highness Ozen, you all, the master is just a person with mediocre intelligence and ignorance. A fool for current affairs. But it is different for me and many retainers of the Ogitani Uesugi family. The decline of the Ogitani Uesugi family was not caused by him, but he still has the spirit no matter how difficult it is, and will still continue to fight for the glory of the family... ...So I have already decided that even if it is to repay the lord's ambition, I will serve the Ogitani Uesugi family until death. Although the final outcome may be difficult to change."
"Why would Danmasa say such depressing words..." Imagawa Yoshimoto saw Nambada Kenshige so depressed and didn't know what to say.
"What I'm most worried about is the whereabouts of my lord after the demise of the Ogitani Uesugi family... It's probably harder than killing him to let someone with his character be used as a puppet and lose hope of reviving the family forever..." Nambada Kenzhong let out a long sigh and spoke with some difficulty: "If possible, I would like to say something treasonous... I hope that my lord can die on the battlefield.
Go on, die as the governor of the Uesugi family in Ogidani, and don’t suffer those sins. "
·
After bidding farewell to Namba Kenshige, Imagawa Yoshimoto went back to the house where he stayed to look for Takeda Harunobu, but was told by Kasuga Torasuna who stayed behind that Takeda Harunobu was visiting alone. Imagawa Yoshimoto didn't know why, but Ginkgo on the side guessed his brother's whereabouts:
"My conscience must have discovered it. When I arrived at Ogidani Uesugi's house, I remembered that little girl." Ginkgo showed a happy smile, then stood up and pulled Imagawa Yoshimoto's sleeve, "I will take you to find him."
Ginkgo dragged Imagawa Yoshimoto around in the streets and alleys of Matsuyama City, looking for a long time but couldn't find anything.
"Do you know where Tora Chiyo went?" Imagawa Yoshimoto couldn't help but ask.
"Of course I don't know. I'm not looking for it." Ginkgo replied confidently.
"What if he visits a house? For example, a relative of Miss Uesugi's mother's house? We're not looking for it in vain. We can't find it on the street." Imagawa Yoshimoto felt strange about Ginkgo's brain circuit.
"Absolutely not. Believe me, it is impossible for my brother to visit others for personal reasons." Ginkgo knew her brother's temperament well and said sarcastically with confidence, "He must be standing outside."
Sure enough, after driving around for a few more times, Imagawa Yoshimoto and Ginkgo found Takeda Harunobu under the stump of a cedar tree. He was sitting on the stump, playing with the thick roots with his feet. After seeing Imagawa Yoshimoto and Ginkgo coming over, they showed surprised expressions.
"Why are you here?" Imagawa Yoshimoto asked curiously.
"Oh, there is nothing to say. A gentleman is magnanimous." Takeda Harunobu did not show any pretense and admitted generously: "Uesugi Shusei (Uesugi Chaosada) and his deceased wife are brothers and sisters after all, and their eyebrows are quite similar. After meeting, I thought of my late wife. I also remembered that she had said before she was alive that when she came to Matsuyama Castle as a guest, she found a tall cedar tree in the Honmaru and she liked it very much. So I happened to come here today and looked for it, but couldn't find it. , maybe it was chopped down, it was the tree stump under my butt.”
"Hmph, I can't tell you still have some affection, and it's no wonder that the little girl is so kind to you." Ginkgo was still sarcastic, but Imagawa Yoshimoto could tell from her tone that she was still in a good mood at the moment.
"Tora Chiyo is still nostalgic. You are not as cruel as you claim to be." Imagawa Yoshimoto also agreed.
"Don't worry, Goro. I will never be biased against the Uesugi family in the slightest because of these boring old relationships, nor will I have any affection for my deceased wife's unrealistic brother." However, Takeda Harunobu really expressed Imagawa Yoshimoto's "goodwill". "The irony" was taken as irony, and she assured him very seriously, "If it is for the benefit of you and my family, even if the Ogitani Uesugi family is in ruins and the entire family is wiped out, I will not show mercy."
"I'm really convinced by you. Why do we have to put feelings and interests in opposition? Why should we be ashamed of having human feelings, but proud of destroying human nature?" Ginkgo just finished praising Takeda Harunobu and was filled with good intentions. He straightened his face like a dog and said helplessly in a cold voice, "Don't you really think it's abnormal for you to be like this?"
"Samurai are not human. If you are too involved in emotions, you will die. The more normal you are, the easier it is to die." Takeda Harunobu briefly addressed his sister, and then looked at Imagawa Yoshimoto:
"Speaking of which, why did you come out to see me specifically? I heard that you went to Nambada to talk about waka?" Takeda Harunobu is already very familiar with Imagawa Yoshimoto, so he naturally knows what he is thinking, " Is there anything you want to discuss with me?"
"It's not just Waka... Namba Tadanmai has a very high opinion of Uesugi Osamu, which is completely different from us." Imagawa Yoshimoto considered the words, but in the end he couldn't find a sentence that could reasonably express what he was thinking, "It just feels like How can I put it... It’s hard to say that they are trying to protect others, it’s just a bit strange.”
"What's so strange about this? It's just success and failure. What determines a person's reputation is not just his personal ability, but more opportunities. If you throw an unparalleled genius into a dying family, he will not be the same. Way. If you put a mediocre person in the position of governor of a wealthy family, he can also gain a false reputation." Takeda Harunobu seemed to have figured this out a long time ago, and blurted out:
Long story:
"If the Ogitani Uesugi family dies, and if the Yamauchi Uesugi family dies, who will care about what kind of real people the Uesugi military department and Uesugi repairmen are? The label of a subjugated king will be slapped on them, no matter how sober, pragmatic and diligent they are. There is no point in trying to improve, as future generations will think that they are useless family governors with no ability."
